OF AGRICULTURE. 199 



fruit imported from America we are inclined to 

 think that fruit in that country grows by itself. 

 "Beautiful climate," "virginsoil," "immeasurable 

 spaces " these words continually recur in the 

 papers. The reality, however, is that horticul- 

 ture that is, both market-gardening and fruit 

 culture has been brought in America to a high 

 degree of perfection. Prof, Baltet, a practical 

 gardener himself, originally from the classical 

 marais (market-gardens) of Troyes, describes 

 the " truck farms " of Norfolk in Virginia as 

 real "model farms." A highly complimentary 

 appreciation from the lips of a practical maml- 

 cher who has learned from his infancy that only 

 in fairyland do the golden apples grow by the 

 fairies' magic wand. As to the perfection to 

 which apple-growing has been brought in Canada, 

 the aid which the apple-growers receive from 

 the Canadian experimental farms, and the 

 means which are resorted to, on a truly American 

 scale, to spread information amongst the farmers 

 and to supply them with new varieties of fruit 

 trees all this ought to be carefully studied in 

 this country, instead of inducing Englishmen 

 to believe that the American supremacy is due 

 to the golden fairies' hands. If one tenth part of 

 what is done in the States and in Canada for 

 favouring agriculture and horticulture were 

 done in this country, English fruit would not 



